Have you heard the saying, “One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch?” Have you said it yourself? What if the opposite was true? What if one good apple could make the whole bunch good? Would you believe me if I told you it was true? What if I told you Jesus said it?
Okay. So…Jesus didn’t use apples. But the meaning is the same. A small amount can permeate a large amount for good. The good of the gospel can be injected into a group of people (or the whole world) and bring about the goodness of God through them.
The parable Jesus tells of the yeast is more amazing than we give it credit for in today’s culture. At the time Jesus told this parable, a Jewish woman would keep a piece of “seed” bread that contained yeast. She would then add more flower to it to make her bread, always keep a small piece to be the starter for the next loaf. I can remember my grandma doing this for yeast rolls.
The amazing part about the parable is Jesus says “three measures of flour” were added. When we do the conversion, this is nearly fifteen gallons, or about fifty pounds, of flour. Can you imagine?! With just a small starter piece of yeast dough, about the size of your fist, and add fifty pounds of flour to it. This isn’t merely making another loaf of bread to feed your family. This is making enough bread for a very large celebration feeding a few hundred people. Jesus is pointing the yeast of the gospel spreading through the world for the celebration of His kingdom.
We don’t always give the gospel enough credit for how life-changing it can be. Speaking the gospel of Jesus can permeate throughout our friend group and our community. Not only can it spread but it can change the lives of many people for the good. It has the opposite effect of the rotten apple.
I pray we all see the effect the gospel can have on people. I pray we know the good the gospel can do. I pray each one of us will speak the gospel so that it will change the lives of many people. See the effect of the gospel. Speak the gospel. The gospel will change lives for the good.
Matthew 13:33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
Marty Pressey 